Got myself an Ace again.

[paytojt]

I'd post pics if I knew how. It's a black/gold standard version, 1x12 combo. Well, something pulled me back to the Stiletto side. It's a great amp, but does anyone find it kind of boxy and brittle sounding? I like it better with my 2x12 cab and just bypassing the combo speaker, but still I am getting brittleness for lack of a better word. Any suggestions to lessen the boxy/brittle sound? I'm thinking about putting a Tung Sol or JJ gold pin in V1 and seeing if that will take away some harshness. I know this amp is capable of greatness from clips I've heard on this site and youtube. It gets a little better with a little more volume, but I can't turn i up too loud in my apartment. Does it have to be wide open to get rid of the boxiness and brittleness? If so, that makes me feel better, because at least I have a solution! Thanks.

 

[boogiemon]

presence *down* if there's a presence knob.

I'd post pics if I knew how. It's a black/gold standard version, 1x12 combo. Well, something pulled me back to the Stiletto side. It's a great amp, but does anyone find it kind of boxy and brittle sounding? I like it better with my 2x12 cab and just bypassing the combo speaker, but still I am getting brittleness for lack of a better word. Any suggestions to lessen the boxy/brittle sound? I'm thinking about putting a Tung Sol or JJ gold pin in V1 and seeing if that will take away some harshness. I know this amp is capable of greatness from clips I've heard on this site and youtube. It gets a little better with a little more volume, but I can't turn i up too loud in my apartment. Does it have to be wide open to get rid of the boxiness and brittleness? If so, that makes me feel better, because at least I have a solution! Thanks.

 

[MusicManJP6]

Congrats! 8)

Presence seems to help me out so far too. I'm still dialing it in though. What guitars are you using?

 

[paytojt]

Sorry, should have mentioned I have of course lowered the presence, treble, everything, not to sound like a smart a**, but of course I would do that! I'm talking about more than just simple eq issues which I have exhaustively tried. Thanks for replies, though.

 

[MusicManJP6]

I'd be interested in tube change differences too actually...

 

[Barry]

They are bright amps but i think if you think of it in the context of a band it suddenly sounds much different . I know everyone isnt in a band but when it has a full band around it then it really shines .

 

[JOEY B.]

They are bright amps but i think if you think of it in the context of a band it suddenly sounds much different . I know everyone isnt in a band but when it has a full band around it then it really shines .

A drum kit will do wonders for the harsh, brittle high end, or does it just wreck your ears? :lol: I totally agree about the solo vs. band comment, the Ace should cut through the loudest of drummers.

 

[Jedro]

paytojt,

I just bought a Stiletto Trident head. I am having the exact same issues that you are. To me, if the mids and treble are above, say, 9 o'clock then its like an icepick in my ear. Certainly the tone changes when I crank the volume, but not drastically.

Maybe you and I can get this thing worked out together before I give up and head back to Guitar Center.

Jed

 

[insideout]

I'm really convinced that the size of the room you play in has a massive affect on harshness. When I play in my home studio (11x12 ft) things get harsh and painful at fairly moderate volumes. My solution was to cut presence/treble way back to where it sounded good. But then when I took my rig to play with my band (huge basement with acoustic foam placements) my tone was completely dull next to the drum set. I had to put treble back up to "normal" settings where you would expect them. Same amp, guitars, player - different room. I'm guessing if you're in an apartment, the room isn't huge so set it to where it sounds decent and then be glad it can get brighter when you take it out to play with a band 8)

 

[Jedro]

Adding to my previous post, it is my understanding that Mesa designed the Stilettos to compliment the Rectifiers' darker tone. That makes sense. However, it's still a very bright amp. A friend of mine has a Recto and we got together and got nearly the same tone. Only I had to radically EQ the top end of the amp.

Jed

 

[paytojt]

My main guitar is a Gibson V with Duncan Blackouts. That might contribute a little to the highs. I can get almost there, but then the brittleness is still present enough to bug me. The best word that comes to mind to describe it is sandpaper. Just kind of a grating feeling. If I turn the presence down, then it's too woofy. Very slowly bring presence up, then it's back to brittle. Less treble more presence:closer, but still grating. And vice versa. That's why I think tubes could help me. The boxy issue I can dial out, but I'm hoping the brittleness can be fixed with tube changes. Speakers are a little too pricey for me to be going that route, unless I knew for sure what would work. I'm not giving up. I LOVE what I've heard from clips. Maybe I need to get the Roadster sound out of my head. I've already read lots of info on here and other places. I'm really thinking a Tung Sol in V1 at least, followed by JJ's which have been known to be darker, would help me. Keep the suggestions coming!

 

[MusicManJP6]

I messed with my Ace last night and had some good results by rolling back the tone knob some to roll off the highs. I thought it warmed up the amp considerably. Might be worth a try. I may actually use the tone knob with this amp! It seems to be very sensitive to the guitar used with it. Pretty cool!

Hey, paytojt, I have to admit I'm surprised you came back to an Ace. When you were selling your first one I asked you what you didn't like about it and you said, "it is too '80s metal" or something to that effect. That still sticks out in my mind! I can hear it at times with certain settings and it makes me laugh a little... :lol:

 

[dmotisko]

I messed with my Ace last night and had some good results by rolling back the tone knob some to roll off the highs. I thought it warmed up the amp considerably. Might be worth a try. I may actually use the tone knob with this amp! It seems to be very sensitive to the guitar used with it. Pretty cool!

I would have to agree 100% on using your guitar's tone controls with the Stiletto's. The Stiletto is very responsive as to relaying the nature and feel of a particular guitar. I find it amazing of how well it responds to different pickups. The way I look at it is that the tone controls were put on the guitar obviously to use, not to just leave them wide open all the time.

 

[dmotisko]

I'd post pics if I knew how. It's a black/gold standard version, 1x12 combo. Well, something pulled me back to the Stiletto side. It's a great amp, but does anyone find it kind of boxy and brittle sounding? I like it better with my 2x12 cab and just bypassing the combo speaker, but still I am getting brittleness for lack of a better word. Any suggestions to lessen the boxy/brittle sound? I'm thinking about putting a Tung Sol or JJ gold pin in V1 and seeing if that will take away some harshness. I know this amp is capable of greatness from clips I've heard on this site and youtube. It gets a little better with a little more volume, but I can't turn i up too loud in my apartment. Does it have to be wide open to get rid of the boxiness and brittleness? If so, that makes me feel better, because at least I have a solution! Thanks.

I have my Stiletto Deuce II a year now and It probably took 6 months for the harshness to calm down in my Stiletto 2x12 cab. You really have to break the V30's in to get them were they are not "ICEPICKY" . My suggestion would be to turn the amp up as often as you could and get the cones bouncing. Put in some ear plugs if you have to. It is also a good idea to dial it in to the way the gain structure flows on the amp. I would try to set gain first then treble,mid,bass,and then add presence to desired level. Being the design of the amp to be bright you will find your treble somewhere around 8:30 to 9:00 and the presence somewhere around 9:00 to 10:00.

 

[jab]

my Ace head has lost any of its harsh tone. I'm not sure what did it, but here is what I've done:
- ST 450s and Dougs preamp tube set
- EQ in the loop (makes a big difference tailoring tone)
- Barber Tone Press (smooths/rounds out the edges)
- I use Fat Clean often with gain up and an Xotic OD. I'm actually at the point where I wish I could dial in some brightness it's so fat and dark.

 

[srf399]

+1 on the guitars tone setting

I wired my strat so that the bridge pickup has a tone control and I find I'm usually playing with it set at about 8 rather than full on at 10. Takes a little of the highs out and sounds great. The other thing is the V30's are a harsh sounding speaker to begin with. It the ice pick it too much then that would be my first move. I personally like the aggressive properties.

 

[paytojt]

I messed with my Ace last night and had some good results by rolling back the tone knob some to roll off the highs. I thought it warmed up the amp considerably. Might be worth a try. I may actually use the tone knob with this amp! It seems to be very sensitive to the guitar used with it. Pretty cool!

Hey, paytojt, I have to admit I'm surprised you came back to an Ace. When you were selling your first one I asked you what you didn't like about it and you said, "it is too '80s metal" or something to that effect. That still sticks out in my mind! I can hear it at times with certain settings and it makes me laugh a little... :lol:

Thanks for all the suggestions. It's hard to say what brought me back. I guess the fact I got it cheap, wanted an amp, and clips I've heard of what people have done. I've also learned a lot about amps since selling the Ace, as far as what tubes to put where and the like. My 2x12 cab helps a lot, and I've gotten it to sound pretty modern. It's not going anywhere for now, especially because I might be killed!

 

[JOEY B.]

4" Beam Blocker for the Ace combo. Make sure that the preamp tubes are not Russian-2's. SED =C= or MESA STR-450 power tubes when you get ready to change them. Guitar tone knob is a must-have for this amp IMHO.

 

[paytojt]

4" Beam Blocker for the Ace combo. Make sure that the preamp tubes are not Russian-2's. SED =C= or MESA STR-450 power tubes when you get ready to change them. Guitar tone knob is a must-have for this amp IMHO.

Thanks, Joey. I have 450's, but wanted to try KT77's first. I think I like the sound better with the 450's. Hey wanna buy an amp?

 

[jab]

my Ace head has lost any of its harsh tone. I'm not sure what did it, but here is what I've done:
- ST 450s and Dougs preamp tube set
- EQ in the loop (makes a big difference tailoring tone)
- Barber Tone Press (smooths/rounds out the edges)
- I use Fat Clean often with gain up and an Xotic OD. I'm actually at the point where I wish I could dial in some brightness it's so fat and dark.

Now that I think of it, I played an Ace and 4-12 Stiletto cab the other day in a store and it sounded like total crap compared to mine (I use 1-12 and 2-12 Roadster cabs). I never would have bought what I heard in the store that day. Answer has to be up there somewhere, along with the guitar/amp tone controls.